Gladys's Rebellion
by Amber Krueger
Summary: The Devil asks Amber for a favor, and Amber agrees... only to find out that she's taken in more than she can chew.
1. Early to Bed, Early to Rise

Amber awoke abruptly in her bed, sitting up in a cold sweat. Her bedroom was dark, it must've been late in the night, and she must've had a nightmare, either that or something startled her.

She paused and blinked a few times, allowing her eyes to adjust to the placid pitch of her bedroom. She exhaled, sliding her legs over the side of her bed, and then jumping down onto the floor. Kicking at a few articles of clothing that stood in her path to the door, she made her way out into the hallway and pondered for a moment before heading to the bathroom.

Living alone wasn't always a necessarily good thing in her life. Sometimes she felt as though she were being watched, even though she probably was. Whenever the thought of her boss came to mind, she would shudder and sigh impatiently; knowing that she would never really have a private life to herself again, as if she were still living with her parents.

Amber flipped the switch that turned bathroom light on and shut the door behind her. She stood in front of the sink and gazed at her reflection. She had big circles beneath her eyes, proof that she hadn't had a good night's sleep in a long time. Ever since she found out that she worked for the Devil, her bedtimes weren't as pleasant. In fact, she found herself waking up at almost every hour of the night, going into the bathroom and staring at her reflection as if the glass that mimicked her image was a pool of matter that hypnotized her every time it caught her eye.

Suddenly Amber was pulled out of her trance by the distinct sound of clothes ruffling. She turned around and peered out the bathroom door. "Hello?" She called out, studying the dark halls of the upstairs corridors.

_There it is again! _

Amber furrowed her brow in thought, trying to guess where the sound was coming from. If she was correct, it seemed as though it were coming from downstairs.

She hesitated to go downstairs, but her bravery got the better of her and soon she found herself tiptoeing down each step.

_Again._

Amber gripped the banister tightly, turning down the hall to the living room and into the kitchen.

The lights were on, and set to the brightest setting; quite opposite from what Amber had left them before going to bed.

She stalked against the wall, fixing her eyes on the suit-clad figure that stood at the stove in the kitchen. Refraining herself from even making the discrete sound of air inhaling and exhaling from her nose.

"Oh, did I wake you up?" The figure turned around to reveal himself, of course; the Devil.

Amber sighed, actually relieved to find that it wasn't some creep that had broken into her house, it was only the Devil. _Only. _

_Who am I kidding? He is a creep! Honestly._

She slouched forward, padding over to the dining room table and sitting at her usual chair. "What are you doing here at -" She stopped herself, regarding her eyes over the bar and into the living room where they met the clock that hung on an unnoticeable angle over the TV. "5:00 in the morning?!" Amber whipped her head to her left where she faced her boss, cooking something at the stove.

"I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd come over to my favorite reaper's house and make you breakfast." The Devil looked at her from over his shoulder, smiling guiltlessly.

"At 5:00 in the morning." Amber nodded and placed her head in her palms, sighing tiredly.

"Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise." The Devil said in a singsong tone, shaking his hips at the stove playfully. "Oh give me a break." She muttered, her words muffled by her hands.

Amber jolted, startled as the Devil placed a plate in front of her, the sound of the glass china clacking on the wooden table piercing through the silence.

"Bon appetite." He sat down across from her.

"You're not eating?" Amber inquired, looking down at her plate, discovering four perfectly cooked strips of bacon, a small pile of scrambled eggs and two pancakes stacked on top of each other, not to mention the small square of butter in the center of the top pancake, melting in a pool of syrup.

"No, no. I made it just for you." The Devil smiled, gesturing for her to "dig in".

Amber arched an eyebrow, taking her fork in hand and aiming it at a piece of bacon. "You're being awfully nice to me..." She squinted, locking her eyes with her boss's.

"Alright, what do you want?" Amber sighed and placed the fork down loudly on the side of her dish.

"I'm hurt. That was just cruel. I can be nice, Amber. Maybe you're different than I thought you were... maybe you're just like everybody else and go by ignorant stereotypes brought on by rumors." The Devil shook his head and looked down.

Amber rolled her eyes and exhaled. "No... I guess you can be nice... sorry." She picked up her fork again and this time jabbing that one piece of bacon. The Devil waited for her to take a bite, and then his smile once again returned.

_It doesn't taste like poison._

Amber thought sarcastically to herself, almost spewing her mouthful of bacon with a laugh.

"Now, I have a job for you." The Devil's lips curled into a savage grin.

Amber dropped her fork and swallowed the remaining meat before sighing once again. "Yep, see I knew it." She said to herself, shaking her head in disappointment.

"There is always a catch with you, isn't there? Jes--" He cut her off, shaking his finger. "Be careful what you say." His smile never leaving.

Amber scratched her head and looked up at her boss from under her brow. "What? What do I have to do?"

"See? That's the spirit, Amber." The Devil reached across the table and patted her on the shoulder. "I need you to spy on Gladys for me. I suspect that she's been meeting with a group of my... former followers. I believe she's planning to overthrow me; her and her little rebellion." Satan explained. His facial expression sharp and serious.

Amber let out an exaggerated gasp, cupping her mouth with her hand. "Oh _my_! Who on Earth would ever try to overthrow you, Lucifer?" She snickered sarcastically.

"Karma's a bitch, let me tell you." She added, shaking her head as she picked at a piece of bacon with her fingers.

The Devil wrinkled his brow, aggravated by Amber's attitude.

"And don't give me that 'sarcasm is the lowest form of social discourse' deal. I know. I don't care. I'll spy on Gladys for you." Amber said with a mouth full of breakfast food. She obviously started to get hungry by sitting in front of a plate adorned with a fit-for-breakfast meal.

"Good. Also, I do expect you to treat me with more respect, or you won't be getting anymore early breakfasts out of me." The Devil let out a low chuckle.

"What do I get out of this, anyway?" Amber asked with her mouth full of pancake.

"Oh, that's easy; a full stomach and a job well done." The Devil winked and with that disappeared.

"You better hope this fills me." Amber said quietly to herself whilst stuffing another forkful of pancake into her already-full mouth. By the time Amber had finished her breakfast, the sun was already burning high in the sea-blue horizon, glistening against the morning dew, and awaking the birds to break in song.

Figuring that since she was already awake, and had already eaten - she'd just go get dressed and get an early start on her new assignment.

_The hell with it. _

Amber tossed the empty plate into the sink and marched upstairs.


	2. Step 1: Set The Trap

"Place the vessel on the mat." Said Gladys, in her usual dull tone. Amber smiled and shrugged with no vessel in hand. "Gladys, are you doing anything later?" She asked, hooking her thumbs in her front jean pockets. Gladys tilted her head and quirked her lips into a suspicious smirk. "No. Why?" Gladys questioned dryly, leaning on the counter.

"I don't know. I just figured I'd invite you to The Brick House with me for a beer after you get off work." Amber smiled casually. "But if you don't want to go, I understand. You're busy with your… demon-stuff." Amber attempted to turn around and leave, but before she could, Gladys sighed. "Wait. I'm not busy, so I guess… we could get a beer later." She almost rolled her eyes at herself.

Amber smirked and turned back to face her. "Good. I'll pick you up after work then?"

"5:00" Gladys nodded.

Amber smiled and left the line.

As she exited the DMV and headed for her car, she saw the Devil standing next to it.

She sighed as she made her way over. The Devil smiled and clapped. "Good job. Step one; set the trap. Accomplished." He gave his reaper a thumb up.

Amber paused in front of her car. "Whoop de-do?" She scoffed, unlocking her car and getting in.

The Devil sat next to her. "You know, you did a lot better than I thought you would for a first try." He said, gesturing his hands as he talked.

"It's not like I haven't done this before. I've spent practically my whole life working at people. I damn well better be good at it by now." Amber shoved the key into the ignition and twisted it until the car started up with a loud purr.

"It takes a lot of guts to stab a friend in the back. Especially in a situation like this. Have you no heart?" The Devil laughed devoutly.

"Oh please. We aren't that close. Not close enough for me to consider her my friend anyway."

"Ah, I see. Then I'm sure you won't object to another favor I'm about to ask you?" The Devil arched his brow and looked at her awaiting a response.

Amber let her head fall back onto the headrest when they stopped at a red light. She exhaled and turned to face him.

"What?"

The Devil beamed, clasping his fingers together on his lap.

"What?" Amber repeated.

"If you find that Gladys has been… going behind my back, which I'm sure you will, I want you to call me immediately." Lucifer handed her a small card, with a number written on the back.

"This is my _private, _and I do mean private, cell phone number. You are not to give it out under any circumstances. I don't care if somebody is holding a welding gun to your face, I forbid you to give it out."

Amber seemed to be at a slight shock when he handed her his cell phone number.

"Now, see… I had given my old number to Sam a while back, but he went behind me and gave it to a group of demons who were working on destroying me. I can't let that happen again, now can I?"

Amber shook her head, studying the small card.

"If I find that you've given this out, consequences will happen."

"I won't give it out." Amber promised, actually meaning it.

_If Sam had the Devil's number and stabbed him in the back with it, then that must mean the Devil apparently trusts me._

"Oh, and do yourself a favor and don't tell Sam about this."

The Devil patted Amber on the knee before he got out of the car. The light instantly turning green as he shut the car door behind him, waving at her through the tinted windows.

It was cold out, so Amber had the top up; even though she'd prefer it to be down, she honestly wasn't in the mood.

Amber floored it; the tires squealing against the pavement, leaving skid marks in her path.

She pulled into her driveway and sat for a few minutes, taking in deep breaths.

_Why would he give me his number, anyway? I'm not much of a trustworthy person in the first place._

Amber pulled out her cell phone and flipped it open. She went into her address book and put her boss in there under "The Devil".

She laughed to herself, wondering what people would think if they saw the name "The Devil" in her phone. She then realized that if her phone got into the wrong hands, they'd know his number, so she changed the name to "Boss" and after a minute or two, she jammed her phone back into her pocket and got out, making her way back into the house; to get ready for her "play date" with Gladys.

5:00 o' clock finally hit as Amber was already about to turn into the DMV parking lot to pick up Gladys.

There stood Gladys outside the DMV entrance, an oversized leather purse looped over her arm and hanging from her shoulder, whilst she slouched lazily as she waited for Amber to pull up.

Loud music blared from Amber's red Mustang, the top was down and the leather seats shined under several beams of sunlight that pierced through the treetops. She turned off the stereo and smiled at Gladys, who walked sloppily over to her car and then got in.

They exchanged very little to no conversation on the way to The Brick House. The awkward silence wasn't nearly as bad as it was when Amber turned on the radio, testing to see what Gladys would do; and of course, Gladys responded by shooting a few dirty looks at Amber before she turned off the music.

"So, what have you been up to lately, Gladys?" Amber asked after a few long and uncomfortable minutes.

"Transferring vessels." Gladys replied in her expected tone.

"I mean aside from work? Don't you ever like… _do _anything?" Amber watched her assignment from her peripheral vision.

Gladys cocked her head to the side and squinted.

"You know, Amber I like you. You're a lot smarter than that other reaper… Sam. You know how this job works, so I'm going to tell you something that I haven't told any "outsiders" before."

Gladys started, and with that, Amber knew she had Gladys eating out of her hand now.

She tried to prevent a smile unzipping itself across her face.

"I can't tell you here, so I'll just show you. Take a right here." Gladys gestured her right hand, pointing down a street. They were only a few blocks away from The Brick House, and Amber was looking forward to that planned beer.

It soon became obvious that they were no longer going for beers.


	3. Our Little Secret

They pulled into an empty lot, and in the near distance stood an (what appeared to be) abandoned warehouse.

"Where are we?" Amber asked as they got out and walked until they reached the warehouse doors.

"My second job." Gladys said, opening the doors with a key.

When they entered, Amber's eyes couldn't comprehend what stood before her.

_When he said "group" I didn't know he meant army!_

An army of demons, of all forms and sizes. Not necessarily in their human forms.

Amber's jaw dropped. "What's this?" She stammered.

Gladys took Amber's hand and lead her inside, until they stood in what seemed to be a huge circle drawn from chalk.

"Tonight, we are taking on Hell and overthrowing Satan." Gladys smiled, actually for once, smiled.

Amber couldn't believe it. The Devil was right.

"I'll be right back." Amber said, running out of the circle and outside of the warehouse.

"Oh shit. Fuck! He was right… I have to call him. All those demons… oh my God."

She fumbled into her pocket and pulled out her cell.

She looked behind her a few times, making sure Gladys and all of those demons stayed inside, and then she flipped open her phone and pressed 6, which was what she had set as the Devil's speed-dial.

Before it could even ring, the Devil appeared behind Amber, his hand on her shoulder.

Amber jumped and gasped. "Don't go in there. There is a fucking army of demons! They said they were going to take on Hell and overthrow you… and Gladys is the leader!"

The Devil smiled and began to laugh.

"Oh Amber, I actually expected you to betray me like Sammy did. Wow. Who would've guessed? I thought you hated me more than Sam could ever, and you actually did everything I told you to. This is great." He said, pacing and laughing to himself.

"Well, what are you going to do?" Amber said, her voice in a slight distress.

"Are you _worried _about me? Aw. This is so cute." The Devil patted Amber a couple time on her cheek, his smile wider than ever.

Amber balled her fists and locked her arms by her sides. She let out a loud huff.

The Devil put his arm around Amber's shoulder and walked her inside the warehouse.

Awestruck. That was the reaction when the demons saw the Devil's suit-clad figure step inside with Amber at his side.

Especially Gladys. Her jaw dropped in complete and utter shock, her eyes moving to Amber. She couldn't even attempt to choke out a word much less a sound as the feeling of apprehension and defeat lurked up her spine.

"Oh you guys. Did you really think, I mean actually _think _that you would be able to defeat me? Take on Hell? Haven't you learned yet? You actually call this an army? Oh ho, ho."

The Devil shook his head and tightened his grip on Amber's shoulders. "You might want to hold on." He warned, looking at Amber from the side.

Amber didn't know what was going to happen next, but she knew that the Devil had to be pissed and that this "army" was going down.

She wrapped her arms around him and with that the building began to collapse. The wails, cries and gasps of panic and terror from the demons filled the warehouse and echoed off the now caving in walls. The lights went out and Amber found herself several feet away from the pile of rubble that was once a warehouse.

"Whoa." Was all that Amber could say. She found herself still clinging onto the Devil and immediately backed off.

"Dude. You totally just… obliterated them." She blinked a few times.

"Hey, thanks to you. You know, if you hadn't have called me, they might've actually formed some sort of threat towards me."

Hearing the Devil actually admit something like that gave Amber a chill up her spine.

"You mean they could've… destroyed you? You're telling me I could've actually gotten rid of you? Well damn." Amber snapped her fingers, scoffed and rolled her eyes, back to her sarcastic self.

The Devil chuckled and grinned. Gladys appeared next to him.

"Hey!" Amber pointed at Gladys, causing the Devil to turn around and his smile only grew.

Gladys folded her arms.

"It's nice to see you'd betray me for him." She sighed and shook her head.

"What… wait a minute. What's going on?" Amber pulled her hair back in confusion.

"That in there? It was all fake. I wanted to see how much I could trust you, Amber… and it seems as though I can pretty much trust you with anything. I can also trust you to go through with something like you did back there. I set this up to see if you were a good enough choice for what I really have planned." Satan continued to smile like a Cheshire cat, then patted Gladys on the shoulder.

"I'm going back to work." Gladys waved her hand in disgust and walked off, disappearing in the afar.

"This was all fake… and… you totally tricked me! Goddamn it. It was all a fucking test?! Great." Amber sighed heavily.

"Got me all worried over nothing." She mumbled to herself, not loud enough for anyone to hear.

"Oh, don't worry. This wasn't nearly as big as what I have in store for you in the near future. There's a demon, and his name is Tony, and I want him destroyed; and who better to ask than you?"

"Why don't you just do it yourself!"

"What kind of Devil would I be if I did my own dirty work?" The Devil snorted and laid his hand back on Amber's shoulder. "You mustn't tell Sam about this. In fact, don't tell anybody. This'll be just between you and me. Understand? Our little secret."

Amber nodded and rolled her eyes enough times for them to roll right out their sockets.

"Can we get a beer first? I'm fucking thirsty." She scratched her head furiously and then looked back up at her boss.

"I'll buy." The Devil smiled again and pat her shoulder.


End file.
